3

The next morning, I found Marcus and Sarah at the breakfast table.

The scene before me made my stomach turn.

Marcus was hand-feeding Sarah pieces of rare venison, letting the blood drip down her chin. It was an intimate wolf courting gesture - one he'd never done for me.

Their heads were close together, lost in their own world.

Thinking I was still drugged asleep, they'd grown bolder in their actions.

Sarah licked blood from her lips, stroking Marcus's arm. "Marcus, Claire seems like a good mother. Maybe spend some time with Noah too? He is your pup after all."

Her voice dripped with false concern.

Marcus beamed at her, his eyes full of adoration I'd never seen directed at me or Noah.

"I couldn't care less about that little runt. I'm saving all my energy for our pure-blood pup in your belly! The perfect blend of our bloodlines!"

He placed his hand on her stomach possessively.

Sarah blushed, preening under his attention. "Stop... but remember your promise. If the child I'm carrying is a pure-blooded pup, you'll break the mate bond with her and claim me properly."

Marcus nodded eagerly, kissing her fingers. "Of course, my love. When have I ever lied to you? Our pup will be everything that weak Omega could never give me."

My claws dug into my palms, drawing blood. I silently activated my crystal recorder, capturing every cruel word for the pack lawyer.

So that's why Marcus had grown so bold - Sarah was carrying his pup.

A pure-blood heir to replace my "defective" son.

What infuriated me most was how Noah, who I'd nearly died bringing into this world, meant nothing to Marcus.

We weren't even part of the Royal Pack, yet he was obsessed with having a pure-blood male heir. Disgusting.

I went to Noah's room, finding him already awake and playing quietly. Such a good boy, never wanting to be a bother.

I placed him in his stroller, planning to take him for a walk in the healing gardens. The burns from yesterday still needed fresh air to heal.

Seeing me enter the kitchen, Marcus quickly stopped feeding Sarah, wiping the blood from her chin.

"Claire, come have breakfast. I got fresh venison from the hunting grounds."

I looked at their leftover food, remembering how he'd hand-fed her so tenderly.

"No thanks. It's a nice day. Noah needs fresh air."

Being so young and innocent, Noah instinctively reached for Marcus when he saw him, wanting his father's touch.

"Daddy! Up!" His little face lit up with hope.

But suddenly Sarah moaned loudly, clutching her stomach. "Oh! My stomach... the pup!"

Marcus's face changed instantly. He completely ignored Noah's reaching arms and rushed to Sarah.

"What's wrong, love? Is our precious pup okay?"

Sarah clutched his arm dramatically. "I don't know... could you help me back to bed? I feel faint..."

Without a second glance at his son, Marcus scooped her up and carried her straight to the master bedroom.

Noah's arms slowly lowered, his eyes filling with tears.

I swallowed my rage and comforted my disappointed son, hugging him close.

"It's okay, baby. Mommy's here. Let's go see the pretty flowers."

I'd planned to sell the Moonlight Blessing herb today while they were distracted.

At the rare herbs merchant, the herb was appraised at $100 Million dollars.

The merchant's eyes went wide. "This is the purest specimen I've ever seen."

I thought of Noah's future as I completed the sale.

A portion went straight to a secret account - our escape fund.

I donated $100,000 to the Pack Orphan Fund, hoping to help other pups and bring good karma to Noah.

The rest would fund our new life away from Marcus. Somewhere he could never hurt our son again.

...

The pack lawyer needed a few days for the separation papers. To avoid suspicion, Noah and I returned home after selling the herb.

Back home, I got an urgent call from the herb guild about incomplete paperwork that needed immediate attention.

"Mrs. Anderson, we need your signature right away or the special permit will expire."

Sarah approached while I was on the call, holding Noah's toys. Her smile didn't reach her eyes.

"Sister Claire, let me watch him while you work. We should bond, since we'll be family."

I hesitated. Something predatory in her expression made my maternal instincts scream.

But the guild master was waiting, and it would only take a few minutes to send the files.

"No need. He can play alone."

I placed Noah in his protective playpen, surrounding him with his favorite toys.

"Mommy will be right back, baby. Just five minutes."

I rushed to my office to send the files.

Less than five minutes later, I heard Noah's blood-curdling screams.

The sound chilled me to my core. These weren't normal cries - they were sounds of pure agony.

"MOMMY! HOT! IT BURNS!"

I ran out to find a horror scene that would haunt me forever.

Sarah stood over Noah, an empty kettle in her hand and a satisfied smirk on her face. Steam rose from my baby's skin where she'd poured boiling water over him.

His precious face and arms were bright red, already starting to blister. The skin was peeling away in places.

Noah's screams tore through me like physical pain. He reached for me with trembling, burned hands.

Something primal in me snapped.

With a roar of fury, I lunged at Sarah, slamming her into the wall. My vision went red with rage.

My claws extended, ready to tear out her throat. In that moment, I wanted nothing more than to end her life.

Her crystal communicator clattered to the floor as she screamed for Marcus.

He burst in, taking in the scene.

Instead of rushing to his injured son, he pulled me off Sarah with a snarl.

"What the hell are you doing?" His eyes glowed with anger - at me, not at the one who'd hurt his son.

I fought against his grip. "She poured boiling water on Noah! Look what she did to him!"

Marcus glanced dismissively at our sobbing son, his face twisting with disgust.

"He's just an Omega. No self-healing ability. Otherwise this would be nothing."

My heart stopped. "Nothing? He's covered in burns! Your son is in agony!"

Sarah wiped her crocodile tears, clutching her stomach. "He kept kicking my belly! I had to protect our pure-blood pup! I didn't mean to hurt him..."

"He's three years old!" I screamed, my voice breaking. "He can barely walk properly!"

Marcus shoved me aside roughly, gathering Sarah in his arms.

"Claire, you're overreacting. It's just a little hot water. If he was a proper wolf, he'd heal in minutes."

I stared at him in horror, not recognizing the man I'd mated. "A little hot water? She deliberately hurt your son!"

"Stop embarrassing yourself," Marcus snapped. "Take the weak pup to your room. And don't you dare touch Sarah again, or I'll have you arrested for attacking a pregnant she-wolf."

As he led Sarah away, cooing comfort to her, I saw her dropped crystal communicator on the floor.

The message on its screen made my blood run cold.

I stared in shock at the words before me.